Written Answers Thursday 4 June 2009

Scottish Executive

Ambulance Service

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average response time has been to an emergency call to the ambulance service in the NHS Lothian area in each of the last five years.

Nicola Sturgeon: Both the average response times for emergency calls and the average response times for Category A calls (serious and life-threatening) for NHS Lothian are set out in the following table:

  

 
2004-05
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
2008-09


Category A (minutes)
7.9 
7.8 
8.8
8.3
6.9


All Emergency (minutes)
8.7
9.1
10.8
10.0
8.5



  Source: Scottish Ambulance Service.

  Note: All Emergency includes Category A, B and C calls.

Bridges

John Park (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many redundancies were caused by the removal of the tolls from the Forth and Tay bridges.

Stewart Stevenson: Responsibility for staffing at the bridges is a matter for the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) and the Tay Road Bridge Joint Board.

Bridges

John Park (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the annual running costs of the Forth and Tay bridges (a) were before and (b) have been since the removal of tolls.

Stewart Stevenson: Responsibility for the operation of the Forth and Tay bridges, including annual running costs, is a matter for the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) and the Tay Road Bridge Joint Board in the first instance.

Bridges

John Park (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost was of (a) installing and (b) removing the refurbished toll plaza on the south side of the Forth Bridge.

Stewart Stevenson: Responsibility for the operation and maintenance of the Forth Road Bridge, including the former toll plaza on the south side, is a matter for the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA).

Bridges

John Park (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much income was generated annually by the tolls on the (a) Forth and (b) Tay bridges.

Stewart Stevenson: For 2006-07, the last full year of tolling, the income from tolls on the Forth Road Bridge was £11.87 million. On the same basis the income from tolls on the Tay Road Bridge was £3.63 million.

Children's Hearing System

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when fees for legal representatives at Children’s Hearings were last (a) increased and (b) reviewed.

Adam Ingram: The fees for legal representatives at Children’s Hearings were set at the introduction of the scheme in 2002. These have not been reviewed or increased since that time.

Children's Hearing System

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to increase the fees for legal representatives at Children’s Hearings.

Adam Ingram: There are currently no plans to increase the fees for state-funded legal representatives at Children’s Hearings.

Children's Hearing System

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what changes are under consideration for the provision of legal representation in the forthcoming Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Bill.

Adam Ingram: It is our intention that the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Bill will propose a permanent scheme to manage the provision of state-funded legal representation in Children’s Hearings.

Conservation

Jamie McGrigor (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive for what reason there is only one special area of conservation (SAC) designated salmon river, the Little Gruinard, from more than 50 rivers between Cape Wrath and the Mull of Kintyre on the Scottish west coast mainland, when there are three SAC rivers on the north coast and nine SAC rivers on the east coast.

Roseanna Cunningham: The suite of 17 special areas of conservation (SAC) designated for Atlantic salmon in Scotland was selected in accordance with the requirements of Article 4 of the EC Habitats Directive in order to provide good representation for the species in terms of its geographic range and variation in genetic sub-types. Consideration was also given to those rivers where other interests (such as freshwater pearl mussel and lamprey) were present.

  It is estimated that the Scottish SAC suite for Atlantic salmon accounts for approximately 40% of returning adults based on catch data.

Education

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many secondary school students have been enrolled in science subjects in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority.

Keith Brown: The information about enrolments is not held centrally. Information on examinations by subject is available at:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2009/03/09154229/0.

Education

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many laboratory technicians were employed in schools with (a) under and (b) over 1,000 students in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority.

Keith Brown: The number of technicians and laboratory assistants employed at the time of the school census in each of the past three years is shown in the following table. Information was not collected in that detail prior to 2006.

  Number of Technicians and Laboratory Assistants, by School Roll and Local Authority, 2006 to 2008

  

 
2006
2007
2008


1,000 or Fewer
Over 1,000
1,000 or Fewer
Over 1,000
1,000 or Fewer
Over 1,000


Aberdeen City
35
22
48
32
53
26


Aberdeenshire
64
47
69
47
70
45


Angus
16
11
17
11
15
10


Argyll and Bute
15
15
11
14
12
9


Clackmannanshire
4
2
3
6
7
3


Dumfries and Galloway
40
12
39
11
40
11


Dundee City
21
3
20
3
15
9


East Ayrshire
19
17
19
17
23
8


East Dunbartonshire
20
24
16
25
23
23


East Lothian
17
3
14
7
14
7


East Renfrewshire
11
21
12
21
10
18


Edinburgh City
38
26
41
22
35
16


Eilean Siar
5
3
6
3
6
4


Falkirk
7
22
7
24
8
24


Fife
33
49
33
55
37
51


Glasgow City
52
56
52
59
61
61


Highland
37
6
38
5
43
7


Inverclyde
27
-
25
-
26
-


Midlothian
13
4
13
3
14
4


Moray
31
7
31
7
31
7


North Ayrshire
24
19
17
25
20
20


North Lanarkshire
54
36
61
40
54
46


Orkney Islands
7
-
6
-
7
-


Perth and Kinross
15
11
14
13
14
13


Renfrewshire
14
17
14
20
13
16


Scottish Borders
17
7
15
12
14
12


Shetland Islands
3
-
3
-
3
-


South Ayrshire
18
15
19
15
15
14


South Lanarkshire
35
41
27
50
26
51


Stirling
18
-
18
-
20
-


West Dunbartonshire
14
18
13
19
19
12


West Lothian
22
21
17
28
22
27

Education

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive on what grounds the decision was taken to discontinue the collection of data for the Scottish School Leavers Survey.

Fiona Hyslop: The grounds for the decision to discontinue the Scottish School Leavers Survey are set out within the publication note of 31 October 2008:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/10/17104150/PublicationNote.

Education

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) three-and (b) four-year-olds in Dumfries and Galloway are receiving their entitlement to free pre-school education in 2009-10.

Adam Ingram: The 2009 pre-school and child care statistics will be available in September.

  Table 22 of the 2008 statistics shows the percentage of children who are registered with each local authority. This can be viewed on the Scottish Government's website at the following address:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/09/12150803/29.

Energy Efficiency

Lewis Macdonald (Aberdeen Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what grant funding is available to community and voluntary groups to improve the energy efficiency of community and church halls.

Lewis Macdonald (Aberdeen Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what grant funding is available to community and voluntary groups to improve the insulation and draught proofing in community and church halls where no microgeneration equipment is installed.

Jim Mather: Grant funding is available to community and voluntary groups to improve the energy efficiency of community and church halls through two main sources.

  Firstly, the Communities and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) provides grant funding for energy efficiency measures to churches and community groups if the energy efficiency installation is part of a project involving a renewable energy installation (energy efficiency will not be funded on its own). Under this scheme advice is free and grants of up to £150,000 are available. An independent charity, Community Energy Scotland, manages the scheme on behalf of the Scottish Government. It can be contacted on 01349 860 120 and via its website at www.communityenergyscotland.org.uk.

  Secondly, for community backed projects undertaking stand alone energy efficiency measures grant funding can be sought from the Climate Challenge Fund. Subject to meeting the fund criteria the Climate Challenge Fund can support actions to improve the energy efficiency of church and community halls such as draft proofing and the installation of insulation. The full criteria are available at www.infoscotland.org/climatechallengefund.

Finance

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the letter from the Director-General Finance and Corporate Services to the Finance Committee of 30 April 2009 in which it is stated that, if the effects of capital acceleration were excluded from the Scottish Government’s Department Expenditure Limit budget for both 2009-10 and 2010-11, the growth in real terms between the two years would be 1.3%.

John Swinney: The Scottish Government’s position is that recalculating the Scottish budgets for 2009-10 and 2010-11 to exclude the effects of end-year flexibility (EYF) and capital acceleration does not alter the amount of money actually available to support public services. Using figures published by the Treasury itself in the Budget 2009 "Red Book", the Scottish Departmental Expenditure Limit (DEL) budget was scheduled to rise in cash terms from £29.1 billion in 2009-10 to £29.3 billion in 2010-11. This cash terms increase of £200 million (rounded to the nearest £100 million) represents a real terms reduction of about 1% using Treasury’s published GDP deflator for 2010-11 of 1.5%.

Finance

Gil Paterson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will indicate how it intends to allocate funding consequentials arising from the UK Budget 2009.

John Swinney: I am delighted to announce that, within the consequentials for Scotland from the Budget totalling £104 million, we intend to provide Scotland’s colleges with additional funding of £19.7 million in 2009-10 and £8.4 million in 2010-11. The new money includes both capital and resource funding. This will provide further valuable support to colleges in addressing the increased demand for courses, including by school leavers, and will help boost skills and the economy. It will also allow colleges to invest in improving their facilities, enhancing the student experience and providing opportunities for the construction sector. Further allocations will be announced in due course.

Health

Christopher Harvie (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when guidance to NHS boards establishing clear referral pathways for patients requiring bariatric surgery will be published and what safeguards are in place to ensure that funding from boards without centres for bariatric surgery is available to facilitate referral and access to surgery if deemed medically necessary by GPs.

Nicola Sturgeon: The Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network has recently published its Final Peer Review Draft National Clinical Guideline on the Management of Obesity . This includes guidance on referral criteria for bariatric surgery. Information about Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network guidelines and processes is available from www.qualityimprovementscotland.co.uk .

  It is a matter for NHS boards to plan for and provide services to meet the assessed needs of their resident population, including access to specialist services not provided locally.

Malnutrition

Jackson Carlaw (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients in the NHS (a) Greater Glasgow and Clyde and (b) Ayrshire and Arran area were (i) diagnosed with and (ii) found to have died from malnutrition while in the care of the NHS in each year since 1997, broken down by hospital.

Nicola Sturgeon: Centrally held information can provide details of patients where malnutrition is identified on their hospital or death records as a principle or contributory cause of death. These figures may represent an undercount of the true number of cases because malnutrition as an underlying reason for discharge from hospital or cause of death may not always be recorded or coded by coding staff.

  Improvements in the completeness of coding (the number of diagnoses that are recorded) may also artificially increase the number of recorded cases of malnutrition on hospital discharge records as may improved detection of malnutrition due to increased screening. Note that the figures in these tables may not correspond exactly with figures released previously. This is because the same patient may now be counted in two separate hospitals whereas previously they would only have been counted once at NHS board level. Databases are also continually updated and corrected.

  The definition of malnutrition employed in this analysis includes diagnoses of anorexia nervosa, nutritional deficiencies (e.g. vitamin A, thiamine and calcium deficiencies), nutritional anaemias and malnutrition related diabetes mellitus.

  It should be noted that these patients may have been malnourished or at risk of malnourishment when they were admitted to hospital.

  The tables 1 and 2 that follow present the number of patients of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and NHS Ayrshire and Arran discharged as a result of the patient’s death with a principle or contributory diagnosis of malnutrition. It is not possible to present a table with deaths directly attributable to malnutrition due to the potential risk of disclosure due to the small numbers involved.

  Table 1: Number of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Residents Who Died in Hospital and Had a Diagnosis of Malnutrition as Principle or Contributory Diagnosis by Hospital of Treatment; Year Ending 31 March 1998-2008

  

 
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008


Bridge of Weir Hospital
-
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Canniesburn Hospital
-
-
-
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Glasgow Royal Infirmary
7
3
3
4
5
*
*
*
7
7
4


Hairmyres Hospital
-
-
*
-
-
-
*
-
-
-
-


Inverclyde Royal Hospital
-
-
*
4
*
3
4
3
4
3
4


Lightburn Hospital
-
*
*
-
-
*
*
-
*
-
-


Mansionhouse Unit
*
-
-
*
*
*
3
*
-
*
*


Royal Alexandra Hospital
4
-
3
3
*
*
*
*
5
*
*


Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh
-
-
-
-
-
*
-
-
-
-
-


Southern General Hospital
-
*
*
-
*
*
*
5
*
*
4


Stobhill Hospital
-
*
3
*
3
*
*
4
*
-
*


Vale of Leven General Hospital
-
-
-
*
*
*
-
-
-
-
*


Victoria Infirmary
*
4
3
4
-
10
5
7
7
*
*


Western Infirmary/Gartnavel General
*
-
5
*
4
*
4
4
5
3
5


Total
16
12
22
23
19
27
24
28
32
18
24



  Source: ISD Scotland (SMR01).

  Note: *Indicates values under three not shown due to the potential risk of disclosure.

  Table 2: Number of NHS Ayrshire and Arran Residents Who Died in Hospital and Had a Diagnosis of Malnutrition as Principle or Contributory Diagnosis by Hospital of Treatment; Year Ending 31 March 1998-2008

  

 
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008


Ayr Hospital
-
4
*
4
*
*
*
5
4
*
*


Ayrshire Central Hospital
-
-
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
-


Community Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*


Crosshouse Hospital
-
6
4
3
6
*
*
*
6
5
*


Inverclyde Royal Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
*
*
*
-
-
*


Western Infirmary/Gartnavel General
-
-
-
-
*
-
-
-
-
-
-


Total
0
10
9
7
11
6
8
10
10
11
7



  Source: ISD Scotland (SMR01).

  Note: *Indicates values under three not shown due to the potential risk of disclosure.

  The information requested on how many residents were diagnosed with malnutrition is given in tables 3 to 4 that follow.

  Table 3: Number of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Residents Discharged From Hospital With a Diagnosis of Malnutrition by Hospital; Year Ending 31 March 1998-2008

  

 
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008


Aberdeen Royal Infirmary
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Ayr Hospital
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
-


Bridge of Weir Hospital
*
7
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Canniesburn Hospital
-
-
-
*
*
-
-
*
*
*
-


Cowglen Hospital
-
-
*
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
-
-
-


Glasgow Royal Infirmary
236
161
98
107
85
89
101
94
113
146
96


Golden Jubilee National Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
8
5
18
13


Hairmyres Hospital
-
*
*
*
*
-
*
*
-
*
*


Inverclyde Royal Hospital
7
16
12
22
34
42
50
65
43
42
38


Larkfield Unit
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
-
-


Law Hospital
-
-
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Lightburn Hospital
12
36
19
12
13
21
18
15
11
12
7


Mansionhouse Unit
15
12
8
10
*
5
15
5
8
12
6


Merchiston Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
-


Monklands District General Hospital
*
*
*
*
*
-
-
*
*
*
*


Ninewells Hospital
-
-
*
-
-
-
*
-
-
-
*


Perth Royal Infirmary
-
-
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Ravenscraig Hospital
*
*
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Royal Alexandra Hospital
21
24
30
23
13
16
15
15
20
17
24


Royal Hospital for Sick Children (Glasgow)
6
13
12
*
6
*
7
*
6
6
6


Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh
*
-
*
-
*
*
-
-
-
-
-


Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh (Little France)
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
*
*
*


Ruchill Hospital
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Southern General Hospital
36
32
50
40
34
54
34
91
108
114
80


Stirling Royal Infirmary
-
-
-
-
-
*
-
-
*
-
-


St John’s Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
-


St Mary’s Hospital
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Stobhill Hospital
94
160
98
63
36
52
60
49
38
21
48


Vale of Leven General Hospital
43
62
56
73
72
54
25
9
12
7
8


Victoria Infirmary
29
44
57
65
64
87
93
102
107
112
57


Western General Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
-


Western Infirmary/Gartnavel General
93
74
71
52
38
44
48
74
61
47
47


Total
605
646
528
480
409
468
473
538
539
564
439



  Source: ISD Scotland (SMR01).

  Note: *Indicates values under five not shown due to the potential risk of disclosure.

  Table 4: Number of NHS Ayrshire and Arran Residents Discharged from Hospital with a Diagnosis of Malnutrition by Hospital; Year Ending 31 March 1998-2008

  

 
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008


Aberdeen Royal Infirmary
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
-
-
-


Arran War Memorial Hospital
*
*
-
*
*
-
-
*
-
*
-


Ayr Hospital
23
44
59
45
42
72
39
35
45
39
39


Ayrshire Central Hospital
-
*
7
*
6
*
*
*
-
5
*


Ballochmyle Hospital
-
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Biggart Hospital
*
-
*
-
-
*
*
*
*
*
-


Community Hospital
-
-
-
-
*
*
-
*
-
-
*


Crosshouse Hospital
76
54
73
79
74
85
80
61
67
59
75


Davidson Cottage Hospital
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
-
*


Glasgow Royal Infirmary
*
*
*
-
*
*
*
*
*
3
-


Golden Jubilee National Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
-
-
*
-


Hairmyres Hospital
*
*
*
-
-
-
-
*
*
-
-


Inverclyde Royal Hospital
-
-
*
5
*
*
*
5
*
*
*


Kirklandside Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
*
-
-
-
-
-


Lady Margaret Hospital
-
*
*
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Ninewells Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*


Royal Alexandra Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
*
-
*


Royal Hospital for Sick Children (Glasgow)
*
*
*
*
-
-
*
-
-
-
-


Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh
*
*
-
-
*
-
-
-
-
-
-


Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh (Little France)
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
*
-
-
-


Southern General Hospital
*
-
*
*
*
*
-
*
*
5
*


St John’s Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
-
-


Victoria Infirmary
-
-
*
*
-
-
-
-
-
-
-


Western General Hospital
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*


Western Infirmary/Gartnavel General
-
-
*
-
*
-
-
-
-
*
-


Total
109
110
154
136
132
170
128
119
123
117
127



  Source: ISD Scotland (SMR01).

  Note: *Indicates values under five not shown due to the potential risk of disclosure.

Ministerial Visits

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it paid for visits by the First Minister to London in 2008-09.

John Swinney: The Scottish Government covers appropriate costs when visits made to London by the First Minister include Scottish Government business.

Ministerial Visits

Mike Pringle (Edinburgh South) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what actions were taken on the recent visit by the First Minister and the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning to China to deliver on point 14 of The Scottish Government’s Plan for Engagement with China to "take the opportunity to raise with appropriate senior Chinese figures concerns about Human Rights in China".

Michael Russell: The First Minister and the Cabinet Secretary held a number of high level government meetings and in discussion with the Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs raised the issue of human rights having received advice from both Amnesty International and the Scottish Human Rights Council ahead of the visit.

Myalgic Encephalopathy

Willie Coffey (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-7080 by Tom McCabe on 1 April 2004, what additional services for people with chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalopathy (CFS/ME) have been established since February 2003.

Nicola Sturgeon: Service developments since February 2003 include the employment of a CFS/ME nurse specialist in NHS Fife and the development of a CFS/ME assessment clinic in NHS Lothian. A programme for people with CFS/ME has also been developed by the Centre for Integrative Care at the Homeopathic Hospital, Glasgow. We are funding an evaluation of that programme to help promote its dissemination.

  In order to encourage further progress in the development of services, we commissioned the Scottish Public Health Network (SPHN) to undertake a needs assessment for CFS/ME, and last month it issued a draft for consultation. It contains recommendations on a proposed model of care for Scotland, including the development of a Managed Clinical Network approach to ME-CFS (to use the Network’s preferred terminology).

  In tandem with the needs assessment, we have also provided Action for ME with funding to produce a first edition of a Good Practice Statement on ME-CFS. This is intended to help general practitioners with the management of ME-CFS until such time as the evidence base allows the development of a clinical guideline by the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network.

NHS Hospitals

Angela Constance (Livingston) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the bed occupancy rate is of each hospital.

Nicola Sturgeon: Average bed occupancy rates for each NHS board and hospital in Scotland for the year ending 31 March 2008 are available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 48216).

NHS Hospitals

Angela Constance (Livingston) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average bed occupancy rate is of hospitals in each NHS board.

Nicola Sturgeon: The information requested is published on the Scottish Health Statistics website under the Acute Hospital Care section http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/3426.html .

NHS Hospitals

Angela Constance (Livingston) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many medical admissions there have been in each hospital since 1999.

Nicola Sturgeon: The total number of inpatient and day case admissions to medical specialities in NHS acute hospitals in Scotland for the years ending 31 March 2000 to 2008 are available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 48217).

NHS Hospitals

Angela Constance (Livingston) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many accident and emergency consultations there have been in each hospital since 1999.

Nicola Sturgeon: The numbers of accident and emergency attendances (new and return) from 1 April 1999 to 31 March 2009 are available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 48218).

NHS Hospitals

Angela Constance (Livingston) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many elective inpatients there have been since 1999.

Nicola Sturgeon: The total number of elective inpatient admissions to NHS acute hospitals in Scotland for the years ending 31 March 2000 to 2008 are available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 48243).

NHS Hospitals

Angela Constance (Livingston) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many day care patients there have been in each hospital since 1999.

Nicola Sturgeon: The number of day case admissions to NHS hospitals in Scotland for the years ending 31 March 2000 to 2008 are available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 48219).

NHS Hospitals

Angela Constance (Livingston) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many medical admissions have been made to St John’s Hospital since 1999, broken down by patients’ postcode area.

Nicola Sturgeon: The total number of inpatient and day case admissions to acute medical specialities at St John’s Hospital for elective, emergency and transfer patients is shown in the following table.

  Number of Admissions to Medical Specialties at St John’s Hospital by Patients’ Postcode Area; Financial Years Ending 31 March

  

 
Financial Year ending 31 March


Post Code Area1
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008


AB
5
1
7
7
3
4
4
2
7


DD
1
4
2
3
11
11
1
-
3


DG
2
1
1
6
3
2
-
5
-


EH
11,598
12,603
12,603
11,809
13,630
13,742
13,747
14,446
15,387


FK
31
17
36
46
26
33
39
50
53


G
13
22
17
16
31
24
25
19
28


HS
-
1
-
-
-
-
1
1
1


IV
3
2
1
1
5
-
4
4
5


KA
4
10
3
8
3
5
9
2
4


KW
1
-
2
-
-
-
2
-
1


KY
18
17
15
18
29
24
20
27
19


ML
292
298
318
323
397
375
289
260
290


PA
3
4
3
4
4
4
6
7
3


PH
2
4
2
5
4
3
8
1
4


TD
4
2
1
-
1
4
10
6
12


ZE
-
-
1
-
-
-
-
-
-


Other2
75
48
52
59
70
71
70
92
72


Total
12,052
13,034
13,064
12,305
14,217
14,302
14,235
14,922
15,889



  Source: ISD SMR01.

  -Denotes 0 (zero).

  Notes:

  1. Postcode area is based on the first two characters of the patients’ postcode.

  2. Other includes non-Scottish, missing and/or invalid postcodes.

NHS Hospitals

Angela Constance (Livingston) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many elective inpatients to St John’s Hospital there have been since 1999, broken down by patients’ postcode area.

Nicola Sturgeon: The number of elective inpatient admissions to St John’s Hospital is shown in the following table.

  Number of Elective Inpatient Admissions to St John's Hospital by Patients' Postcode Area; Financial Years Ending 31 March

  

 
Financial Year ending 31 March


Post Code Area1
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008


AB
1
2
4
2
2
1
3
6
6


DD
5
4
3
4
2
2
7
7
3


DG
24
19
27
19
22
25
24
43
45


EH
4,873
4,512
4,210
4,331
3,819
3,831
4,055
3,997
4,592


FK
22
24
42
47
49
43
48
46
43


G
6
8
6
7
3
8
12
6
16


HS
1
1
-
-
-
-
2
2
3


IV
40
42
45
47
51
43
38
27
15


KA
2
4
-
1
-
-
-
2
2


KW
10
10
14
8
6
5
6
10
4


KY
262
216
225
204
201
222
231
192
193


ML
133
93
57
95
99
89
81
69
80


PA
5
3
2
4
-
3
1
4
4


PH
2
7
11
9
13
13
8
6
8


TD
93
79
71
72
90
95
109
108
131


ZE
-
-
-
-
1
-
-
1
1


Other2
11
14
10
4
6
8
13
9
14


Total
5,490
5,038
4,727
4,854
4,364
4,388
4,638
4,535
5,160



  Source: ISD SMR01.

  -Denotes 0 (zero).

  Notes:

  1. Postcode area is based on the first two characters of the patients’ postcode.

  2. Other includes non-Scottish, missing and/or invalid postcodes.

NHS Hospitals

Angela Constance (Livingston) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many day care patients have been admitted to St John’s Hospital since 1999, broken down by patients’ postcode area.

Nicola Sturgeon: The number of day case admissions to St John’s Hospital is shown in the following table.

  Number of Day Case Admissions to St John's Hospital by Patients' Postcode Area; Financial Years Ending 31 March

  

 
Financial Year Ending 31 March


Post Code Area1
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008


AB
127
121
122
172
149
95
122
110
120


DD
77
51
40
39
30
43
32
21
37


DG
54
95
66
72
39
40
53
46
62


EH
11,255
12,007
11,818
10,162
10,445
10,062
10,997
11,463
11,475


FK
129
106
133
150
185
213
215
128
154


G
30
15
11
26
29
27
38
23
28


HS
-
1
6
11
10
7
6
2
5


IV
108
67
47
33
69
45
35
47
53


KA
3
4
3
4
3
-
1
6
-


KW
9
13
11
19
13
6
10
12
10


KY
443
342
346
416
432
368
368
319
358


ML
258
243
265
250
268
247
236
192
217


PA
18
7
14
4
11
8
8
3
7


PH
65
60
49
47
37
32
30
25
31


TD
80
84
79
83
103
132
156
123
120


ZE
3
4
2
5
5
3
4
7
6


Other2
39
18
25
26
18
19
14
20
29


Total
12,698
13,238
13,037
11,519
11,846
11,347
12,325
12,547
12,712



  Source: ISD SMR01.

  -Denotes 0 (zero).

  Notes:

  1. Postcode area is based on the first two characters of the patients’ postcode.

  2. Other includes non-Scottish, missing and/or invalid postcodes.

NHS Hospitals

Angela Constance (Livingston) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients were transferred from the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary to St John’s Hospital on a weekly basis in the last 12 months.

Nicola Sturgeon: The number of patients who have a hospital episode at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh and are then transferred to St John’s Hospital as part of the same continuous hospital stay is presented in the following table for each week of the financial year 2007-08.

  

Week Number
Week Beginning1
Number of Patients Transferred


1
1 April 2007
3


2
8 April 2007
4


3
15 April 2007
3


4
22 April 2007
6


5
29 April 2007
10


6
6 May 2007
7


7
13 May 2007
5


8
20 May 2007
6


9
27 May 2007
5


10
3 June 2007
7


11
10 June 2007
8


12
17 June 2007
5


13
24 June 2007
9


14
1 July 2007
11


15
8 July 2007
10


16
15 July 2007
9


17
22 July 2007
1


18
29 July 2007
7


19
5 August 2007
11


20
12 August 2007
2


21
19 August 2007
6


22
26 August 2007
6


23
2 September 2007
8


24
9 September 2007
8


25
16 September 2007
7


26
23 September 2007
12


27
30 September 2007
11


28
7 October 2007
3


29
14 October 2007
11


30
21 October 2007
5


31
28 October 2007
5


32
4 November 2007
9


33
11 November 2007
3


34
18 November 2007
6


35
25 November 2007
4


36
2 December 2007
4


37
9 December 2007
7


38
16 December 2007
2


39
23 December 2007
8


40
30 December 2007
4


41
6 January 2008
5


42
13 January 2008
5


43
20 January 2008
6


44
27 January 2008
7


45
3 February 2008
6


46
10 February 2008
4


47
17 February 2008
7


48
24 February 2008
5


49
2 March 2008
7


50
9 March 2008
9


51
16 March 2008
4


52
23 March 2008
8


53
30 March 2008
14



  Source: ISD SMR01.

  Notes:

  1. The date of admission to St John’s Hospital (the transfer) has been used to assign week.

  2. A patient can only be counted once in each week but may be counted more than once across all weeks.

NHS Hospitals

Mary Mulligan (Linlithgow) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing has had with NHS Lothian regarding the return of emergency surgery and trauma orthopaedics to St John’s Hospital from the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.

Nicola Sturgeon: It is for each health board to plan and deliver services to meet the needs of its resident population. As I have made clear in the past, I do not intend to review their previous decision.

  However, I have made clear to NHS Lothian that I expect it to maintain three acute/emergency hospitals.

NHS Staff

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many clinical nurse specialists there were in (a) NHS Tayside and (b) Scotland in each of the last three years for which information is available, expressed as whole-time equivalent and as a percentage of all NHS nurses and midwives.

Nicola Sturgeon: The following table provides the number of clinical nurse specialists in (a) NHS Tayside and (b) NHS Scotland in the last three years, expressed as whole-time equivalent and as a percentage of all NHS nurses and midwives as requested.

  

 
Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS)
Nurses and Midwives
Percentage of CNS to total Nurses and Midwives


NHS Tayside
NHS Scotland
NHS Tayside
NHS Scotland
NHS Tayside
NHS Scotland


2006
110.5
1,346.2
4,912.3
56,783.9
2.2
2.4


2007
111.6
1,287.6
4,995.2
57,050.4
2.2
2.3


2008
136.7
1,433.3
5,029.4
57,949.6
2.7
2.5



  Source: Information Services Division (ISD) Scotland.

  Note: Figures shown are whole-time equivalent.

NHS Staff

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) cancer, (b) diabetes, (c) infection control, (d) palliative care and (e) accident and emergency clinical nurse specialists there were in (i) NHS Tayside and (ii) Scotland in each of the last three years for which information is available.

Nicola Sturgeon: The following table details the number of clinical nurse specialists there were in (a) cancer, (b) diabetes, (c) infection control, (d) palliative care and (e) accident and emergency in NHS Tayside and NHS Scotland in the last three years as requested.

  Table 1: Number (Head Count) of NHS Tayside and NHS Scotland Clinical Nurse Specialists as at 30 September

  

 
2006
2007
2008


NHS Tayside
NHS Scotland
NHS Tayside
NHS Scotland
NHS Tayside
NHS Scotland


Cancer
12
165
14
189
21
180


Diabetes
9
109
10
104
10
102


Infection Control
2
63
1
48
2
47


Palliative Care
20
86
17
72
22
76


Accident and Emergency
7
129
6
104
6
132



  Table 2: Number (Whole-Time Equivalent) of NHS Tayside and NHS Scotland Clinical Nurse Specialists as at 30 September.

  

 
2006
2007
2008


NHS Tayside
NHS Scotland
NHS Tayside
NHS Scotland
NHS Tayside
NHS Scotland


Cancer
11.9
153.5
13.7
173.9
20.2
165.3


Diabetes
8.1
93
8.3
86.3
8.5
86.4


Infection Control
2
59.1
1
45.8
2
44.9


Palliative care
18
79
15.6
65.5
19.6
68.9


Accident and Emergency
6.9
111.5
6
90.6
6
116.9



  Source: Information Services Division (ISD) Scotland.

NHS Hospitals

Mary Mulligan (Linlithgow) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when emergency surgery and trauma orthopaedics will return to St John’s Hospital from the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.

Nicola Sturgeon: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-24416 on 4 June 2009. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx .

Nutrition

Jackson Carlaw (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what surveys have been undertaken to establish patient satisfaction rates with NHS meals; what the outcomes of these surveys have been, and what steps are being taken to improve the standard of meals.

Nicola Sturgeon: Health Facilities Scotland, part of NHS National Services Scotland, requires all NHS boards to carry out National Catering Patient Questionnaires quarterly and to make the results publicly available in their areas.

  The Scottish Government recognises the importance of nutrition to patients and we have taken steps to improve the whole experience of nutrition in hospitals including improving the standard of meals. In 2008, we introduced a national catering specification Food in Hospitals, which provides guidance to NHS boards on how to provide tasty, nutritious and healthy meals to the diverse population of patients who enter hospitals. The specification aims to ensure that hospital catering recognises the fundamental importance of appropriate food provision for every patient as part of his or her treatment. This in turn will influence health and recovery.

Nutrition

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to encourage and promote healthier food options for young people at school.

Adam Ingram: The Scottish Government is committed to improving the Scottish diet and we have taken action to build on the excellent work in Scottish schools to provide and promote healthier food options by introducing new nutritional requirements for food and drink in schools.

  The Schools (Health Promotion and Nutrition) (Scotland) Act 2007 (the Act) requires local authorities to ensure that food and drink provided in Scottish schools comply with The Nutritional Requirements for Food and Drink in Schools (Scotland) Regulations 2008. These regulations were introduced in primary schools in August 2008 and will be introduced in all secondary schools in August 2009. In September 2008 we published guidance to help those involved in providing food and drinks in schools to implement the regulations. More information on the Act and the regulations is available on the Scottish Government website at www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Education/Schools/HLivi/foodnutrition.

  The Act also requires that all schools are health promoting and, within the school environment, children and young people learn about healthy eating and healthy living. In May 2007 we issued guidance for local authorities and schools to support them as they take this work forward. This guidance, along with the Curriculum for Excellence experiences and outcomes for Health and Wellbeing together with the accompanying principles and practice document, which were published in April 2009, describes the expectations upon individuals, schools and local authorities for promoting the health and wellbeing of children and young people:

  www.ltscotland.org.uk/curriculumforexcellence/responsibilityofall/healthandwellbeing/index.asp.

  Among other things, pupils will learn about all aspects of healthy eating, from creating healthy food options to understanding hygienic practices and develop an understanding of the relationship between food, health and wellbeing. They will also explore various issues regarding food, including sourcing and production and its environmental impact.

Opencast Mining

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive how many opencast coal sites have been approved for new operations or expansion since May 2007, giving details of (a) site name and location, (b) new site or extension size in hectares and (c) granted coal reserves in tonnes.

Stewart Stevenson: The British Geological Survey collect this data. The information is published at www.bgs.ac.uk/MineralsUK/minequar/coal/occ/home.html . Information for 2008 will be published shortly.

Opencast Mining

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive how many planning applications for opencast coal operations were referred to it between 1 July 2007 and 1 April 2009 under the terms of Planning Circular 5/2007 and how many it (a) approved and (b) rejected.

Stewart Stevenson: The Scottish Government has been notified of six opencast coal operations during that period all of which were cleared back to the respective planning authorities to determine.

Opencast Mining

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive how it decides whether local authorities have a financial interest in opencast coal planning applications and whether this includes (a) sponsorship by coal companies of local projects or services and (b) existing contributions made by coal companies to community trusts on a levy-per-tonne basis.

Stewart Stevenson: In the first instance it is for the local authority to decide if it has a financial interest in an opencast coal application and whether an application requires to be notified under Circular 3/2009.

Parliamentary Questions

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-23866 by Shona Robison on 21 May 2009, whether it will provide an answer that specifically addresses the issue raised in the question.

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-23867 by Shona Robison on 21 May 2009, whether it will provide an answer that specifically addresses the issue raised in the question.

Shona Robison: The information is not held centrally.

Planning

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what advice ministers received from (a) Scottish Natural Heritage and (b) the Scottish Environment Protection Agency with regard to the removal from Planning Circular 3/2009 of environmental impact assessments as a central trigger for Scottish Executive planning notification.

Stewart Stevenson: Delivering Planning Reform was published on 28 October 2008. It contained a range of commitments across the public and private sectors to accelerate the pace of planning reform. This included commitments from Scottish Natural Heritage and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency to more proportionate involvement in the planning process to focus on matters of genuine national interest. The intention to issue a revised Notification Direction and Circular was signalled in Delivering Planning Reform .

Planning

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers climate change a matter of national interest in the context of Planning Circular 3/2009.

Stewart Stevenson: Planning applications are required by law to be decided in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. Should issues related to climate change be raised in relation to a planning application, these will need to be taken in to account by the decision maker.

Public Transport

Sarah Boyack (Edinburgh Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it has taken to encourage people to make greater use of bus services.

Stewart Stevenson: The Scottish Government is committed to promoting the use of bus services in Scotland and over the last 10 years there has been an increase in bus patronage of 14%. We are taking forward a number of initiatives with local government partners and bus operators to enable this growth to continue.

  Scottish Government funding for bus services is considerable, amounting to over £220 million of direct support in 2007-08 including concessionary fares and Bus Service Operators Grant. Latest figures show that from the record levels of funding local authorities receive from the Scottish Government they have spent £51 million supporting local bus services. This substantial outlay is intended to help the industry drive down fare costs, encourage more routes and enable more older and disabled people to use these important services. Latest data shows that Scotland provides £23 / 77% per head of population more subsidy than in England (excluding London, which is not deregulated).

  We have recently appointed a Senior Bus Development Advisor in a seconded post with the specific remit to help local transport authorities deliver the policy improvements set out in our Bus Action Plan. These include promoting Quality Partnerships (QPs) and Punctuality Improvement Partnerships (PIPs). We have published guidance for local authorities on a range of issues to assist them in improving bus networks in their areas thereby encouraging people to use buses. This includes guidance on PIPs and promoting Bus Route Development Grant schemes. We expect to publish guidance on QPs and a Park and Ride Framework later in the year.

Rail Network

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it would support further freight services operating on the Stirling-Alloa-Kincardine rail route.

Stewart Stevenson: Transport Scotland continues to support sustainable transport solutions, including the transfer of goods from road-to-rail across the entire Scottish network, with a view to encouraging a reduction in road congestion hence reducing emissions.

Rail Network

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether people who bought properties on the basis of information issued by the promoters of the Stirling-Alloa-Kincardine Railway and Linked Improvements Bill that trains would not run between 11 pm and 7 am will be compensated.

Stewart Stevenson: Compensation may be payable under Part 1 of the Land Compensation (Scotland) Act 1973 provided qualifying property owners along the new railway line can demonstrate that they have suffered financial loss due to devaluation of a property as a result of the re-opening of the Stirling-Alloa-Kincardine railway line .

Residential Care

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures are being taken to ensure that residents in care homes for older people are not covertly given antipsychotic drugs without the due process of their rights being followed.

Shona Robison: Part 5 of the Adults with Incapacity Act 2000 covers medical treatment and a revised Code of Practice for Part 5 was issued to all care homes in Scotland in March 2008. The code makes it clear that the use of covert medication is permissible in limited circumstances, for example to safeguard the health of an adult who is unable to consent to the treatment in question and where other alternatives have been explored and none are practicable.

  The recent report of the joint Mental Welfare Commission and Care Commission inspection of the care of people with dementia in care homes, Remember I’m Still Me, raises concerns about the use of medication in a disguised form and the information and legal safeguards that are in place to give covert medication lawfully and safely. The Scottish Government accepts all the recommendations in the report and is committed to taking action to improve the quality and safety of care for those with dementia who live in care homes in Scotland. We will do this in partnership with key stakeholders through the development of the Scottish Dementia Strategy.

Road Accidents

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) accidents and (b) fatalities occurred on the A9 between (i) Dunblane and Perth, (ii) Perth and Pitlochry, (iii) Pitlochry and Inverness and (iv) Inverness and Thurso in each of the last five years.

Stewart Stevenson: The number of (a) accidents and (b) fatalities which have occurred on the A9 between (i) Dunblane and Perth, (ii) Perth and Pitlochry, (iii) Pitlochry and Inverness and (iv) Inverness and Thurso in each of the last five years is as shown in the table below:

  

(i) A9 Dunblane to Perth (Inveralmond roundabout)
Year
(a) Personal Injury Accidents
(b) Fatal Accidents
(b) Fatal Casualties


2004
32
4
4


2005
37
1
1


2006
38
1
1


2007
48
2
2


2008
28
3
3


Total
183
11
11


(ii) A9 Perth (Inveralmond roundabout) to Pitlochry (Junction with A924)
Year
(a) Personal Injury Accidents
(b) Fatal Accidents
(b) Fatal Casualties


2004
15
2
2


2005
11
1
1


2006
18
1
1


2007
17
2
2


2008
12
0
0


Total
73
6
6


(iii) A9 Pitlochry (Junction with A924) to Inverness (Longman roundabout)
Year
(a) Personal Injury Accidents
(b) Fatal Accidents
(b) Fatal Casualties


2004
48
3
3


2005
33
0
0


2006
39
6
7


2007
43
5
7


2008
42
5
10


Total
205
19
27


(iv) A9 Inverness (Longman roundabout) to Thurso (Scrabster)
Year
(a) Personal Injury Accidents
(b) Fatal Accidents
(b) Fatal Casualties


2004
59
5
6


2005
66
3
3


2006
70
3
3


2007
60
2
2


2008
50
2
2


Total
305
15
16



  Supporting information showing accidents per kilometre and accident rates per 100 million vehicles is tabled below:

  

 
(i) A9 Dunblaneto Perth
(ii) A9 Perthto Pitlochry
(iii) A9 Pitlochry to Inverness
(iv) A9 Invernessto Thurso
Scottish Trunk Road Average


Distance
43km
43km
140km
177km
Dual C/way
Single C/way


Accidents per Km
0.85
0.34
0.29
0.34
0.99
0.48


Fatal Accidents per Km
0.05
0.03
0.03
0.02
0.03
0.02


Accident Rate (100 MVKm)
Dual = 8.82  Single = n/a
Dual = 4.13  Single = 5.99
Dual = 6.44   Single = 9.41
Dual = 7.63  Single = 17.14
7.70
17.80


Fatal Accident Rate (100 MVKm)
Dual = 0.46Single= n/a
Dual = 0.41Single = 0.36
Dual = 0.22 Single= 1.49
Dual = 0.4  Single = 0.66
0.28
1.00



  The figures quoted may differ slightly from those published elsewhere because they were extracted on a different date and the database may have changed between the two dates, e.g. due to late returns, corrections to earlier returns or changes in traffic volume.

Road Safety

Des McNulty (Clydebank and Milngavie) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will support moves to reduce the speed limit on single carriageway rural roads from 60 mph to 50 mph and, if so, when it expects the reduced limit to be introduced.

Stewart Stevenson: Inappropriate and excessive speed is a major cause of death and injury on the roads. The Scottish Government is keen to encourage initiatives to cut speed, particularly near schools and in residential areas. However, we consider that local authorities are best placed to consider where and when to introduce a lower speed limit on local roads, taking local factors such as road width, terrain and use by vulnerable road users into consideration.

  Guidance to local authorities on setting local speed limits was issued in 2006. Local authorities have been asked to review the speed limits on all A and B class roads in their areas by 2011 in accordance with the guidance. Local authorities already have the power to set speed limits lower than the national speed limit on local roads in their areas if they consider this to be appropriate.

  National speed limits are reserved to the UK Government. The Department for Transport considered including a proposal to reduce the national speed limit on rural single carriageway roads from 60 mph to 50 mph in its consultation for a new UK road safety strategy post-2010. In the event they did not pursue this idea.

Roads

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how long the single track section is of the trunk road between Bettyhill and Thurso.

Stewart Stevenson: The road which links Bettyhill to Thurso is the A836 and is not a trunk road.

  The repair and maintenance of this local road is the responsibility of Highland Council and it is to the Chief Executive of Council that this question should be addressed.

Roads

David Stewart (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when the traffic capacity study for the A9 Longman roundabout was commissioned.

Stewart Stevenson: The brief for the Longman roundabout traffic capacity study was finalised in June 2006, shortly after the start of the Scotland Transerv contract.

Roads

David Stewart (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects the conclusions of the traffic capacity study carried out by Scotland Transerv on the A9 Longman roundabout to be published.

Stewart Stevenson: The study report is currently in draft and will be finalised by end of July 2009.

Roads

David Stewart (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what budget allocations have been made for improvements to the A9 Longman roundabout.

Stewart Stevenson: Funding has been provided for a preliminary design for improvements of the Longman roundabout on the A9.

Scottish Government Finance

John Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the financial commitment to PFI/PPP is estimated to be for each local authority in (a) 2010-11 and (b) 2011-12.

John Swinney: The information requested can be found in the following table.

  Estimated Total Annual PFI/PPP Unitary Payments by Local Authority

  

Local Authority
2010-11 (£m)
2011-12 (£m)


Aberdeen City 
12.5
13.3


Aberdeenshire
10.2
10.5


Angus 
11.3
11.5


Argyll and Bute 
20.1
20.3


City of Edinburgh 
42.6
43


Clackmannanshire
7.8
7.9


Dumfries and Galloway 
20.8
21.8


Dundee City
12.6
12.9


East Ayrshire
8.5
8.3


East Dunbartonshire
12.9
13.2


East Lothian
7.8
8


East Renfrewshire
10.5
10.7


Falkirk
25.9
26.4


Fife
15.5
15.7


Glasgow City
47.2
48.2


Highland
25.2
25.6


Inverclyde
2.9
8.2


Midlothian
10.6
10.7


North Ayrshire
10.3
10.4


North Lanarkshire
17.9
18.4


Perth and Kinross
13.3
16


Renfrewshire
14.2
14.5


Scottish Borders
8.4
8.6


South Ayrshire
10.8
11


South Lanarkshire
31.6
32.5


Stirling
12.8
13.1


West Dunbartonshire
10.5
11.5


West Lothian 
12.5
12.8



  Notes:

  1. The figures contained in the table are inclusive of the Scottish Government PFI/PPP funding contribution.

  2. The table does not include the local authority figures for the Strathclyde Police procured Police Force Training Centre project in East Kilbride as these are not held centrally. However the estimated total annual unitary payments for this project in 2010-11 and 2011-12 are £3.7 million and £3.8 million respectively.

Scottish Government Funding

Bill Wilson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it will spend on (a) Gaelic, (b) Scots and (c) BSL over the next three years.

Michael Russell: In the years 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11 the Scottish Government has provisionally committed the following amounts of funding:

  (a) Gaelic:

  Bòrd na Gàidhlig - £5.4 million in each year.

  Gaelic education (specific grants scheme) - £5.56 million in each year.

  Gaelic Media Service (MG ALBA) - £12.4 million in each year.

  Sabhal Mòr Ostaig - £1.25 million in each year.

  Capital improvements (education) - £2.7 million in 2009-10 and 2010-11.

  (b) Scots:

  Scottish Language Dictionaries - £400,000 in 2009-10 and 2010-11.

  Scots Language Centre - £140,000 in 2009-10 and 2010-11.

  Policy development - £74,000 over three years.

  (c) British Sign Language (BSL):

  £1.5 million over three years to increase the number of BSL/English interpreters in Scotland, and to support and increase the teaching of BSL, particularly at advanced levels.

  £134,896 over three years to the Scottish Council on Deafness to develop and consolidate channels of engagement between deaf people (including deaf BSL users) and the Scottish Government and other statutory bodies in order to improve access to services and information.

Scottish Government Funds

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how and when the accelerated capital investment has been spent.

John Swinney: The accelerated capital for 2008-09 has been allocated as follows:

  

2008-09 Capital Acceleration
Amount £m


Major roads schemes including A96 Fochabers bypass and A75 improvements
3.0


Smaller roads schemes including the improvements to A9 junctions
1.5


Rail Related Schemes
1.0


Further Acceleration-roads
20.2


Enterprise - Scottish Enterprise will spend £5m of advanced capital expenditure during this financial year on the expansion to the SECC 
5.0


Finance and Sustainable Growth total
30.7


Local Government Total - Schools 
10.0


Health and Wellbeing Total – Housing Accelerated Housing Investment Programme
5.0


Further Education-To be used to create improved campuses for colleges and universities across Scotland
2.5


Higher Education To be used to create improved campuses for colleges and universities across Scotland
5.0


ELL Total
7.5


Overall Total
53.2

The accelerated capital for 2009-10 has been allocated as follows:

2009-10 Capital Acceleration*
Amount £m


Major roads schemes including A96 Fochabers bypass and A75 improvements
17.0


Smaller roads schemes including the improvements to A9 junctions
6.9


Strategic Park and Ride
5.0 


Enterprise Agencies
30.0


Further capital acceleration
7.0


Finance and Sustainable Growth Total
65.9


Housing: Affordable Housing Investment Programme 
10.0


NHS
50.0


Town Centre Regeneration Fund
60.0


Health and Wellbeing Total
120.0


Higher and Further Education
13.0 


Education and Lifelong Learning Total
13.0


Fisheries and rural development 
5.6


Environment and Rural Affairs Total
5.6


Local Authorities including Schools Estate
90.0 


Local Government Total
90.0


Overall Total
294.5 



  Final outturn for 2008-09 will be reported shortly. 2009-10 accelerated capital will be spent during the course of the current year.

United States Visas

Hugh Henry (Paisley South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has sent emails or letters to the American authorities pressing for the restoration of a visa-issuing service in Edinburgh and, if so, on what dates.

Michael Russell: The issue of the US Consulate in Edinburgh not issuing visas has been raised by ministers and officials in a number of meetings with the US Consul in Edinburgh and the US Embassy in London. The US Government advise that the decision to review which posts will issue visas is considered biannually and Scottish ministers will continue to pursue the matter at every opportunity.

  The US Consulate in Edinburgh has not offered a visa issuing service since the early 1990’s. With the advent of the Visa Waiver Scheme in 1988 the US Government took the decision to withdraw the service on the basis that around 90% of UK travellers to the US do not require a visa.